Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-08-25

Brazilian clover. The plant has previous
~ been introduced into the eastern aud
southern states but attracted little
attention until Its remarkable success in
Californis. In Europe it is generally
known as Lucerne, probably from the |
canton OF LuCerne, in Switzerland, where ,
it was largely cultivated st an early day. |
Il hiss been known in cultivation from |
very sncient times, and was introduced |
from Western Asia into Greece about 500 /
B. c. 1t is now largely grown in South |
ern France, and to considerable extent !
in other parts of Europe. It hiss been !
introduced into several Of the countries
of South America, and on the pampa5 Of
Buenos Ayres ii has escaped from cult
walton and grows extensively il q wild
state. Though known for long time in
the Unite States, alfalfa Is not YET cult
vatea TO the extent that it should be.
In the southern states eas. of the Mis-
! sissippi it is especially desirable that its
merits should be better known. The eli
mate of that section is nearly as favorable
to its growth ss that of Southern CaIifOr-
mia, but much of its soil less suitable,
hence reports from different localities
vary somewhat as to its value.
/ Leonard A. He'll of the Texas Live
Stock Journal, San Antonio, Tex A
falfa has been successfully raised in this
! locality only by irrigation, which is prac-
ticsble to but limited extent. There
are those who claim that It can be sue
cessfully grown with only the natural
rains, but after careful investigation l
seriously doubt its practicsblhty.
james Perry, Whitesboroug7, North
cas- ern Texas: Alfaf. is falr success
IN our black waxy soil, and can be cut
twice year, yielding one to three tons
at q cutting. Broadcast sowing is the
usual method, and seems to be sufficient
on clean land. It stands the drouth well
and the freeze of ordinary winters. Three
years ego, however, l had seven acres
badly killed by "spewing up'' in winter,
but the scattering plants that remained
are doing well.
c. A. Graves, FiskVille, Central Texas:
1t Is cultivated here only to 8 small e1-
tent. 1t dies out in spots, just as cotton,
sweet potatoes, and some other Vegeta-
bles do, snd apparently for the same I'M
known reason. In some localities, the
spots where it dies out cover one-fourth
of the ground. The uncertainty of mois-
ture on and near the surface for eny
length OF time, owing to hot suns and
drying winds, makes the catch from all
certain.
DR.. T. P. Stiles, Austin, Tex: Alfalfa
is not permanent here. For tive or three
years il Will produce good crops, aHd
then it begins to die out in circulrr
patches. Inc spots increase in size until
in year or two they become confident.
Gotten plants sometimes die in the same
wsy, and apple trees put in such soil are
subject tO y sudden blight. | have never
kpown alfalfa to ne killed by either cold
or drouth, bU. its growth is very slight Ia
very dry soil. Iu Green county it is
grown quite successfully under irriga-
ton, but il dies in some localities there
the same as here.
Cactus or PriCkly Pear is thus described
by Dr.. Massey: A number of species of
cactus, manly Of the genus Opuutia, ana
commonly called NOpal or Pcickly Pear,
are used IS food for cattle and sheep ia
the dry regions OF Texas and westward,
where the ordinary forage plants fail. In
the natural state cattle do not often
7 touch it, unless driven by hunger, except
while the new growth is young and ten
der. Sheep eat 1t without preparation
more readily than cattle, and for
them the plants are sometimes
merely cut down so as TO be
. | WlLQlQ rSdCu. MOTc OlJeu the nSGueG
passes along and clips off q portion Of
each Fat joint, so that the S eep can enter
their noses without coming IN contact
with the spines. For cattle, it is custom
airy to SINCE off the spines over brisk
blaze.
The succulent nature of the plant in thP
growing season sometimes hiss too great
q laxative effect but if other fodder is fed
" it'll it this tendency is rather beneficial
than otherwise. Notwithstanding these
difficulties, however, the cactus, when
properly prepared, is valuable fodder
plant, and is destined to come into more
general use in the warm arid parts of the
country.
Leonard A. He'll, San Antonio, Tex,
, says: The cactus or prickly pear grows
, abundsntly in nearly every section Of
Southwest Texas, often re. ching height
/ of ten or twelve feet. Ever since the
settlement of the country by the Englsh,
and probably years before, it has been
t used to supplement grass in times Of
drought but now il is being
used with other feeds at
{ all times, and especially in the winter
Sheep DO well upon it without water,
5 there being sufficient moisture in the
leaves. The herder goes along with q
short sword and clips the points Of the
e great leaves so that the sheep an insert
its nose, when 1t readily eats them en-
tire.
DR.. A. Z. Carothers, sn extensive
ranchman Of CotuIla, LaSalle county,
r began feeding prickly pear and cotton
s seed meal to 400 head of steers for the
: purpose of fattening for the market, and
q! the last account was highly pleased
} with the result, and confident Of financial
2 success. He singes off the thorns with q
t financial success. He singes Off the thorns
e with flame, and cuts up the pear and
! feeds it mixed in troughs with the cotton
seed meal in the proportion of about five
1 pounds OF meal to seventy pounds of
s pear. The steers est this food with great
q relish, and take the food rapidly. They
Y have about $500 acre deld to run in. II
this method OF feeding proves success,
< it may work quite revolution in this sec
8 ton, as thousands Of tons of cotton seed
: are exported annually TO England, and
: the supply OF the pear is simply lnexhaust-
e ible. The feeding of the pear need in no
D way diminish the supply, as whenever a
t piece of leaf is left on the ground it takes
e root end makes another plant, growing